"Councils also need a faster and more effective legal system which means fly-tippers are given hard-hitting fines for more serious offences," he added.

'Man with the van'

"Local authorities should also be able to recoup all prosecution costs, rather than be left out of pocket."

Councillor Peter Fleming, deputy chairman of the LGA, wants changes so councils can deal better with the "man with the van" phenomenon.

He told the BBC: "We are seeing a massive increase in commercial fly-tipping, people going door-to-door saying 'We will take this for cash in hand.' Then we are finding that stuff dumped on a commercial scale, in our countryside, down back alleys. It is a huge problem costing lots and lots of money.

"After we have gathered evidence we would like to be able to take people's vehicles that have been used for fly-tipping, particularly commercial fly-tipping, and crush those vehicles.

"At the moment we have to give notice and often then the vehicle is no longer there. We see getting rid of these vans off the roads that are used to fly-tip will serve as a deterrent to others who are plying this trade".